getting through church with a chatty 2-year-old

[Anonymous]

Getting through church with our 2-year-old is so tough as he loves to talk, talk, talk. Books seem like the obvious quiet choice, but he points at all the pictures and loudly names them. "Dog!" "Baby!" I sometimes try to get him to focus on what's going on with the service for short periods of time, but that just backfires also - he ends up saying (loudly) things like, "What that man doing?" "Man read book!!"

He's just barely 2 (24 months), so he's not too into coloring yet, although I do keep bringing them as I think that will be a promising activity some day - for now he will color for maybe 2 minutes.

Any ideas? I did have success yesterday for a few minutes with a foam puzzle book - will have to get another one of those.

TIA!

[Anonymous]

Being books and quiet toys that he only sees at church. I usually bring a small bag (we have one of the smallest Ll bean canvas totes) and that bag has special church stuff.

But he is 2, he is going to talk some. Just sit in the back, keep reminding him to talk quietly and leave for a few minutes if you need to. He will learn, eventually.

[Anonymous]

Depends on what type of church you go to I guess...

We are Catholic, and during those years I would usually bring my little ones into the "cry room" with me. It was just easier to be surrounded by other parents in the same circumstance.
Also, I found a book I liked http://www.amazon.com/Mass-Book-Children-Donna-Piscitelli/dp/1592760759
that explained the mass better, and also had a little mouse hidden in each picture...so it's something to keep the child interested in occupied. I think my kids may have been slightly older than 2, when they enjoyed this book, though.
If you're not Catholic, that book might not be relevant for you, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Being books and quiet toys that he only sees at church. I usually bring a small bag (we have one of the smallest Ll bean canvas totes) and that bag has special church stuff.

But he is 2, he is going to talk some. Just sit in the back, keep reminding him to talk quietly and leave for a few minutes if you need to. He will learn, eventually.

OP here- that's a good idea to have books/toys that are just for church. Does anyone know of a book about the Catholic mass for toddlers? I was thinking that would help if he could see pictures about it.

[Anonymous]

Churches have nurseries and you put him in there. Yesterday some woman let her baby cry, at full bladt, for a cew minutes before taking it out. At one point we could not hear the minister over the kid crying. You and your chatty two yr. Old do not have the right to wreck the one hour of the week that the other congregants look forward to as a quiet time to commune and worship. Take him to the nursery.

[Anonymous]

We used different tactics with our two boys to help them get through our hour-long Episcopal Church service.

With one, we usually got an aisle seat near the back of the church. He would draw or read or whatever but if he got wild, we could make a quick exit.

With the other, we found he did better in the very front row where he could see what was going on and knew that the people on the alter were looking at him, which kept him quiet.

Good luck and know that things will change. I hope that you are able to find a church home that everyone wants to attend for a long time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Churches have nurseries and you put him in there. Yesterday some woman let her baby cry, at full bladt, for a cew minutes before taking it out. At one point we could not hear the minister over the kid crying. You and your chatty two yr. Old do not have the right to wreck the one hour of the week that the other congregants look forward to as a quiet time to commune and worship. Take him to the nursery.

Leaving aside the fact that your tone is not terribly Christian, its worthwhile to know that some churches do not have nurseries or Sunday school during services either because they do not have enough children to warrant them or because they choose to include children in services and then have nursery and Sunday school/Bible study (for children and adults) immediately preceding or following the service. If OP attends one of these churches then your response is not only rude but also unhelpful.

[Anonymous]

Take him for a walk outside 1/2 way through. I'm assuming that you are already seated near an exit.

Doesn't your church have a nursery? I'd think that a toddler would get more out of the little songs, crafts etc. It's kind of early for big church.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Being books and quiet toys that he only sees at church. I usually bring a small bag (we have one of the smallest Ll bean canvas totes) and that bag has special church stuff.

But he is 2, he is going to talk some. Just sit in the back, keep reminding him to talk quietly and leave for a few minutes if you need to. He will learn, eventually.

OP here- that's a good idea to have books/toys that are just for church. Does anyone know of a book about the Catholic mass for toddlers? I was thinking that would help if he could see pictures about it.

9:24 here

did you see the book I linked above?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Churches have nurseries and you put him in there. Yesterday some woman let her baby cry, at full bladt, for a cew minutes before taking it out. At one point we could not hear the minister over the kid crying. You and your chatty two yr. Old do not have the right to wreck the one hour of the week that the other congregants look forward to as a quiet time to commune and worship. Take him to the nursery.

Get a grip you cranky bitch! I hate kids crying in service but how no problem with kids talking to themselves. OP - stay and relax. You are doing nothing wrong. So what if he's a bit noisy. It's not a wedding. Just sit on the side of a pew and be ready to leave if he gets too noisy.

[Anonymous]

Until my DD starts Catholic school next year in kindergarten, my DH and I go to different Masses, taking turns to stay home with DD. We just get more out of it that way. And there's plenty of time to teach DD the right way to act in Mass and to pass along our faith, etc. She has the rest of her life!

[Anonymous]

Churches have nurseries and you put him in there. Yesterday some woman let her baby cry, at full bladt, for a cew minutes before taking it out. At one point we could not hear the minister over the kid crying. You and your chatty two yr. Old do not have the right to wreck the one hour of the week that the other congregants look forward to as a quiet time to commune and worship. Take him to the nursery.

This attitude is part of what is destroying churches. If you don't want kids in church, guess what? They aren't going to learn to behave in church, and they certainly aren't going to want anything to do with church as they grow up. Studies have shown that people who went to church regularly as children are the people who go to church as adults -- especially the ones who fall away for some number of years in their 20s and 30s.

Back to the original question. OP, is food frowned upon in your church? I find a bag of raisins will keep my 2 year old occupied and quiet for a good 15-20 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Until my DD starts Catholic school next year in kindergarten, my DH and I go to different Masses, taking turns to stay home with DD. We just get more out of it that way. And there's plenty of time to teach DD the right way to act in Mass and to pass along our faith, etc. She has the rest of her life!

We've used this strategy occasionally, but attending church as a family is a priority for us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Until my DD starts Catholic school next year in kindergarten, my DH and I go to different Masses, taking turns to stay home with DD. We just get more out of it that way. And there's plenty of time to teach DD the right way to act in Mass and to pass along our faith, etc. She has the rest of her life!

We've used this strategy occasionally, but attending church as a family is a priority for us.

That's fine. It's not for us!

[Anonymous]

I have a kid who's about to turn 3 and he's a total Chatty Cathy. We do what others have done- sit in the back, near an exit, where we can easily make a getaway. We've also done the cry room, but I find that sitting in there sometimes seems to make my kids' behavior worse, so we usually only use it now for quick visits. I also will take him downstairs during the homily if he needs it. I am torn btwn bringing them to church when they're younger- if they don't go, they won't get used to it, but on the other hand, going with them is so distracting to us as parents.